While a number of PC OEMs have begun taking pre-orders for Windows RT tablets and convertibles, it looks like Acer has decided to sit out the first (and perhaps second) round of launches. Dell, Samsung, Asus, and Microsoft will all begin shipping their models over the next couple weeks.

Acer isn’t the first company to take a step back from the ARM-friendly Windows 8 remix. HP backed off in June, and Toshiba decided to follow its lead just two months later. Sony isn’t quite ready to offer up a Windows RT tablet either, though an 11-inch prototype showed up this month. There may yet be a Vaio RT coming, but Sony has decided to wait for the “right time” before launching its own Surface competitor.

Acer President Jim Wong said that the company is proceeding with Windows RT research and development, but revealed that any product launches have already been pushed back from the first quarter of 2013 to the second. The delay may have something to do with initial reactions to the Surface, though the comparatively small Windows RT app ecosytem may be a concern, too.

Maybe Acer’s not quite ready to sell consumers a tablet that looks and feels like Windows but can’t install just any old Windows app — it will be selling Windows 8 devices like the Iconia W700 above, after all. Then again this is Acer we’re talking about, and the company hasn’t exactly been shy about its feelings for Microsoft’s foray into the tablet market. It’s possible that Wong and his team are still feeling jilted by Microsoft’s decision to get in on the tablet action with Surface.